Cage Warriors 51's Ryan Roddy in the sport for one reason: Fighting is fun

When Ryan Roddy (5-0) enters the cage at today’s Cage Warriors 51 event in Ireland, it won’t be for millions of dollars. It’s just his first fight in the promotion, so there’s no belt in the line.

And while he hopes those fans watching the live stream on MMAjunkie.com will be impressed with his performance, he’s really not doing it for them, either.

No, the 22-year-old Irishman looks to remain undefeated in his career for one very simple reason: Fighting is fun.

“For me, I do this for fun,” Roddy told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio). “I don’t make enough money off it to make a living on it solely alone, so I have to do it for fun or else I don’t see the point.”

Thus far, the lightweight has enjoyed his time in the sport, as he’s finished all five of his fights as a professional. On Monday, he faces Paul Redmond (4-3) in the main-card opening bout of Cage Warriors 51, which takes place at The Helix in Dublin.

Of course, fighting on New Year’s Eve takes some sacrifices, even from someone who’s pursuing the sport for the simple passion of the competition. Weightcutting over Christmas is no one’s idea of a good time, but Roddy, who now lives in England, said the chance to make it back to his home soil and compete for Cage Warriors was well worth the price.

“It was fine,” Roddy said. “I hadn’t been home in a while, in Ireland, so it was just good to get home, even though I was cutting weight. I got presents, so I can’t complain. I got well looked after. I just couldn’t eat.

“I’m just happy to fight. Fighting on New Year’s Eve in Ireland in Cage Warriors, I can’t complain.”

Redmond brings a two-fight win streak to the cage, and he’s been the much busier fighter as of late. However, Roddy – who’s fought just once in the past three years, believes the fact that he’s a bit of a mystery to most could very well play to his advantage.

“It’s just a small world over here, especially in Ireland,” Roddy said. “Everybody knows everybody, really. But to be fair, I don’t think Paul knows much about me. As far as I can tell, there’s not a whole lot of information about me. I’ve been kind of quiet for a couple of years now.

“I think I know more about Paul than he knows about me. I hope it works in my favor.”

That one fight, which took place just eight weeks ago, ended well for Roddy, who scored a first-round submission win over Roberts Skujins. Impressively, all five of his career wins thus far have come by stoppage. Roddy said that is most certainly by design but that fighting isn’t really about the result but about executing to his own utmost potential.

“For me, personally, it’s not really about the win or the loss to me,” Roddy said. “I think the glory of victory is short-lived. In my experience, after you fight, after three or four hours you’ve kind of forgot about the victory, so I don’t really think too much about that. I think more about the experience of fighting. In that sense, I want to fight an exciting fight for me, not for anybody else.

“I’m not overly worried about what people think. It’s just that I want to be able to fight and look back and remember really good moments where I did stuff that I thought I couldn’t do or try things that nobody else is trying. It’s more for that reason.”

Regardless of whether he wins or loses, Roddy’s next fight isn’t likely to bring with it a big paycheck or fancy gold belt, either. But for now, that’s OK for the youngster. Perhaps those things will come. But if not, there will still be no regrets.

“I think other people care more about the victories than actual fighters do,” Roddy said. “I just know that if I don’t make the most of every moment now, I’ll regret when I retire.”

MMAjunkie.com Radio broadcasts Monday-Friday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) live from Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino’s Race & Sports Book. The show is hosted by “Gorgeous” George Garcia, MMAjunkie.com lead staff reporter John Morgan and producer Brian “Goze” Garcia. For more information or to download past episodes, go to www.mmajunkie.com/radio.

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